VoIP Magazine

Written by Annie Lindstrom

Videotron Expands with Nortel VoIP Solution

Videotron has inked a multiyear agreement for Nortel's VoIP technology, professional services, and SIP multimedia portfolio. The MSO will use all of the above to expand full-featured telephony services to its 1.5 million residential and business customers, according to Daniel Proulx, senior vice-president, engineering for Videotron.

The Quebec-based cable provider is switching from a hybrid TDM/IP-based VoIP solution, which it has been using to deliver VoIP to subscribers since January 2005, to Nortel's pure VoIP, end-to-end, softswitch-based solution. Specifically, Videotron is deploying Nortel's PacketCable-qualified Communication Server (CS) 2000-compact softswitches and the Nuera BTX 4000 media gateway, also supplied by Nortel, according to Elaine Smiles, director of cable marketing for Nortel.

To help ensure a smooth end-to-end network implementation, the deal also includes project management, multivendor integration and testing, security assessment, and deployment. Nortel also is providing technical support, emergency recovery and repair services to Videotron.

In a press release announcing the deal, Videotron says it will use both PacketCable and SIP protocols to create a comprehensive offering of residential and business services for its subscribers. The Nortel softswitches also provide Videotron with an evolutionary path to a SIP-based IP multimedia subsystem (IMS) service delivery architecture, and support for future roll out of multimedia services such as video calling, unified messaging, and remote collaboration, according to Smiles.

"I think this deal is a continued validation for Nortel and its success with cable VoIP and that operators are looking to Nortel for the direction of where they see these services going for cable VoIP," says Teresa Mastrangelo, principal analyst for BroadbandTrends.com, a service of The Windsor Oaks Group LLC.

In addition to Videotron, Rogers Cable Inc. and two other unannounced MSO customers have embraced the Nortel softswitch VoIP solution, says Smiles. And Shaw Communications Inc. is using Nortel SIP services to offer free on-Net calling to all of its cable modem subscribers, she adds. The difference between Nortel's softswitch-based PacketCable solution and competitors' VoIP-specific offerings is that Nortel added the PacketCable spec to a switch that is being used in telco and wireless operators' networks to provide full-featured local and long distance capability, says Smiles.

As of June 30, 2006, Videotron was providing cable telephone service to 283,000 subscribers. Currently, Videotron's cable telephony service is available in 74% of the company's total service area.

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